The Santiago Court of Appeals has unanimously rejected an economic protection writ filed by registrar Luis Maldonado and notary Linda Bosch. The court ruled that the legal avenue chosen is inappropriate for challenging the regulations governing the mandatory retirement of judicial officers upon reaching age 75.
The plaintiffs sought to halt the implementation of notary and registry reforms that would force them to vacate their positions due to their age. Maldonado is currently 81 years old, while Bosch is approaching 76.
Arguments of Age Discrimination
Legal counsel for the officials, led by attorney Patricio Zapata, argued that the current regulation constitutes age discrimination. The filing claimed the measure unfairly targets professionals in good health, aiming only to exclude them from their roles as public officers simply because they have exceeded the established age limit.
The legal dispute stems from a 1995 reform to the Organic Code of Courts. That amendment introduced mandatory retirement at age 75 but included a transitional clause to protect those already in service—a provision that Maldonado and Bosch claim should apply to them.
However, the Court's magistrates did not rule in favor of the plaintiffs. The resolution, signed by Minister Guillermo de la Barra and acting ministers Hernán López and Pablo Toledo, noted that the contested actions are of a general nature.
“The challenged acts correspond to actions of a general nature, linked to the application of the regulations governing the termination of notaries' functions due to reaching the age limit, a matter that does not fall within the legal hypotheses protected by an economic protection writ,” the court ruled.
The appellate court further specified that the legality of such administrative acts must be challenged through ordinary jurisdictional channels. The Court concluded that the injunction presented is not the appropriate mechanism to achieve the plaintiffs' objectives.
